Chris Kasmer, Candidate for CHSD 230 Board of Education: Election 2025

ORLAND PARK, IL — Chris Kasmer is running with the 230 United Party for his first full term on the CHSD 230 Board of Education in the April 1 election. Early voting starts March 17 through March 31.

Your Name

Chris Kasmer

Campaign website

230united

Campaign social media (include links for Facebook, Instagram, etc.)

230United Facebook, 230United Instagram

Town/city of residence

Orland Park

School district

CHSD 230

Family. (Names, ages and any pertinent details you wish to share.)

Does anyone in your family work in politics or government? This includes any relatives who work in the government you're running for.

No

Education

Mid-America Carpenters Apprenticeship Graduate, BA from DePaul University, Certified Employee Benefits Specialist (CEBS), IFEBP/Wharton

Occupation. Please include years of experience.

Union Carpenter since 1998, President Carpenters Local 1027

Previous or current elected or appointed office

Appointed to 230 school board in September 2024

The most pressing issues facing our district are _______, and this is what I intend to do about them.

Probably the most pressing issue our district is facing is staffing hard to fill positions. We want to make sure we can accommodate in-demand classes as they develop, which makes attracting highly qualified, certified staff essential. The current board and administration have developed a process agreed to by the teachers’ association to attract the best teachers to our district. What are the critical differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post? Several things differentiate me from the other people running.

First, I am one of the few people running that have a student currently enrolled in a 230 school and have a 6th grader who will also attend 230 in the coming years. I will be able to experience as a parent every decision that the board and administration make and be able to provide real-time feedback to administrators and the board on how programs are working vs how they are intended to work.

Second, even though I am a recent addition to the board I have a long track record supporting our area’s students and schools. I held one of the top two volunteer leadership positions for the Orland School District 135 parents’ organization from 2017 through the start of the current school year. I was certainly not alone, but I was the lead individual on our annual district fundraiser which raised just over $125K after expenses in my last three years.

Third, I have a unique perspective as a board member who graduated high school and went directly into an apprenticeship program. It wasn’t until I was an adult that I pursued my bachelor’s degree. It is critical that as a board, we are invested in the education of all students, not just those on the collegiate track.

Fourth, as a labor leader in the construction industry, I will have previous experience with both construction projects and capital expenditures. I am also well-versed in collective bargaining, labor law and employer/employee issues.

Fifth, I earned a professional designation as a Certified Employee Benefit Specialist through the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans and the Wharton School. I hope to use this professional background to help the district navigate rising benefit costs.

If you are a challenger, in what way has the current board or officeholder failed the community or district?

Voters should be cautious of candidates who claim the current board or administration has failed the community or students, as that kind of messaging often oversimplifies challenges. There are always areas to improve in any organization, and each incoming cohort of students is different from preceding cohorts. District 230 has an enviable track record of adapting to a changing student population, workplace qualifications, and collegiate landscape.

Describe the other issues that define your campaign platform? What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

I’ve been serving as a trustee on the CTA Retiree Health Care Trust since 2010 and served a portion of that time as chairman. I’m an alternate on the CTA retirement plan as well. This experience has solidified my prudence in fiscal responsibility. It’s hard to dig out of a financial hole, and much easier to not let yourself get into one.

My experience teaching collaborative leadership skills to construction executives will translate to the D230 board. Involving other voices and opinions is something I do daily. That will help our schools continue to adopt best practices in the classroom and improve student opportunity and outcomes.

Why should voters trust you?

The entire team of candidates I’m running with has a positive track record. We’ve proven we can adapt to our students’ needs while keeping costs as low as possible. The 230 United candidates have the experience and dedication to continue this work because we’ve done it before.

If you win this position, what accomplishment would make your term in office a success?

I’ve heard from a cohort of parents across 230 that our district could improve student support for kids with IEPs stemming from dyslexia, ADHD, and executive functioning challenges. I’m really committed to learning what could be done and implementing better support for these students.

What guidance should staff be given for dealing with potential ICE enforcement at schools?

They should follow the current policy which is to comply with all local, state, and federal law. We also make sure that upper-level building and district level admin are easily accessible to all staff to handle any issues.

Is the high school teaching critical race theory, Marxism or any other ideologies, and what should be done about it?

Our schools are focused on core competencies to prepare students for college and/or technical schools and/or the workplace. Classrooms should touch on varying theses in a subject. Students will become critical thinkers by analyzing opposing viewpoints.

Should cell phones be banned during school? Why or why not?

We should continue D230’s recently implemented strategy in which teachers have the option to require students to use the cell phone cubbies that are currently available in all classrooms. At the teachers’ direction, students do not have phones as a distraction during instructional time, but they do have them during passing and lunch periods. The district should be given a year or two to evaluate how effective this is before making more drastic decisions.

How do you feel about sex education being taught in school? Should an LGBTQ component be included, and why or why not?

I think it’s important for students to learn how their bodies work so they can make informed, responsible decisions. It’s important for kids to learn early on how to care for themselves, stay healthy, and prevent unwanted outcomes.

Do you think property taxes are too high, too low, or just about right?

While I and every other taxpayer in D230 would like to pay less in taxes, lowered property taxes would directly result in program cuts, declining schools, and lower property values. The current board has done everything it can to run a lean operation and still provides a wide variety of curricular options to students and some of the best student performance in our area. District 230 spends less per student each year than all but 2 of the 7 high school district that border us while performing better than 5 of them. District 230 schools are high value, spending less and getting more than nearly all our neighbors.

How do you feel about TIF districts? Do they hurt or benefit schools? Explain.

TIF districts do not hurt or benefit school districts; schools get all the money set in their levy. The problem with TIFs is that they hurt all other taxpayers in the district who do not reside in the TIF. As general costs rise over the duration of a TIF, properties inside the TIF don’t pay any rising taxes to the schools. The TIF share of rising costs gets paid by the rest of us. Residential TIFs are particularly challenging because they can generate students with no accompanying revenue, placing an even higher burden on taxpayers outside the TIF.

When it comes to student achievement, what are schools within this district doing well and what needs to be improved? How can those improvements be made? District 230 has seen major growth in the number of students taking Advanced Placement classes. When 230 students take Advanced Placement exams, they pass at a rate 12% higher than the national average. That’s impressive and a testament to high student achievement across all 3 of our schools. We have also seen incredible growth in dual credit courses, where a student earns credit in high school and at a college or university at the same time. These dual enrollment courses can include non-traditional college work like culinary arts.

Every candidate in this race would like to see the ELA and Math scores on the Illinois Report Card improve, but even with that, we need to be cautious. Other districts achieve this by not having Career and Technical Education, Culinary, or Fine Arts programs as robust as 230’s. If we narrowly focus on the only 2 metrics of student performance that the state makes readily available, we may undermine the learning of students who are not narrowly focused on a career path where those 2 metrics dominate.

Is there any reason you would not serve your full term of office, other than those of health or family?

No